The person of interest in the Maine mass shooting that left at least 22 people dead has been identified as a trained firearms instructor who spent two weeks in a mental health facility over the summer.
Robert Card, 40, is the subject of a police manhunt in connection to the massacre in the city of Lewiston last night.
Card is from Bowdoin, Maine – a town with a population just over 3,000 – and is believed to be an Army Reservist stationed out of Saco.
Card grappled with mental health issues, recently reporting ‘hearing voices’ and threatening to shoot up the military training base.
Over the summer, he was committed to a mental health facility for two weeks.
A criminal background check retrieved by local media suggested that in 2007, he was charged with a misdemeanour offence for driving under the influence, which he was found guilty of.
Card was a keen fisher and hunter, according to his social media posts
He is understood to have studied engineering at the University of Maine between 2001 and 2004
His house is located around 10 miles away from Lisbon, where he reportedly abandoned his car following the deadly shooting
He was forced to pay a $500 fine, spend 48 hours in a cell and had his driver’s licence suspended for 90 days.
It is not currently known what he was under the influence of when he was arrested.
His X account, now suspended, revealed that he followed and liked posts by several prominent conservative pundits, including Donald Trump Jr., Tucker Carlson and Dinesh D’Souza.
In March, he liked a post by Donald Trump Jr. that read, ‘Given the incredible rise of trans/non-binary mass shooters in the last few years… by far the largest group committing as a percentage of population… maybe, rather than talking about guns we should be talking about lunatics pushing their gender affirming bullsh** on our kids?’
He also liked a post by Dinesh D’Souza that read: ‘Ban assault weapons? Well, cars kill more people than guns do. But we blame the drivers. We don’t ban large or fast cars. We understand that cars, like guns, don’t act by themselves. The blame lies with the people who operate these mechanical devices. Common sense 101.’
Card studied engineering at the University of Maine between 2001 and 2004, though it is not currently known if he graduated.
The gunman opened fire at the bowling alley and a local bar. A separate shooting at a Walmart distribution center was not believed to be connected
The person of interest in the Lewiston, Maine shooting has been identified as 40-year-old Robert Card
Surveillance footage from inside the Sparetime Recreation bowling alley showed a bearded man carrying an assault-style rifle
Authorities say that Card is only a person of interest and refuse to call him a suspect yet
His last known address was at 941 Meadow Road, Bowdoin, Maine, around 10 miles away from Lisbon, where he reportedly abandoned his car following the deadly shooting.
A phone number listed for the alleged shooter was not in service, the Associated Press reported.
Authorities have reiterated that Card is only a person of interest and refuse to call him a suspect yet.
The Lewiston Police Department issued a statement Wednesday night, urging people to contact the department with any information on his whereabouts.
‘Law Enforcement is attempting to locate Robert Card 4/4/1983, as a person of interest regarding the mass shooting at Schemengees Bar and Sparetime Recreation this evening,’ it read. ‘Card should be considered armed and dangerous.’
He was last known to be driving a white Subaru Outback with a black bumper.
Maine State Police released their own statement indicating that the car had been located.
‘A vehicle of interest was located in Lisbon and we are now also asking residents in Lisbon to shelter in place as law enforcement works in that area to locate Card,’ it read.
The manhunt expanded Wednesday night, as hundreds of police officers from local and multiple federal agencies surrounded Lisbon and the nearby Lisbon Falls.
Card was handed a $500 fine and spent two days in prison after being found guilty for driving under the influence
Maine State Police say that Card is considered armed and dangerous
The 40-year-old is a trained firearms instructor and Army Reservist stationed out of the city of Saco
Wednesday night’s massacre left at least 22 dead and over 60 injured
The shooting is the deadliest in the United States this year. Pictured: law enforcement stand guard outside Central Maine Medical Center
Lewiston Police responded to an active shooting at two different locations on Wednesday night – Schemengees Bar & Grille Restaurant and a bowling alley.
Another shooting was reported at a Walmart distribution center, but a company spokesperson told CNN that none of Walmart’s facilities were involved in the incident.
Surveillance footage from inside Sparetime Recreation showed a bearded man in a brown hoodie clutching an AR-15-style rifle.
Twenty-two were killed and over 60 were injured, prompting Maine hospitals to declare a mass casualty event.
Law enforcement officers were deployed from surrounding states, including Massachusetts, according to a post from the Boston office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation also offered assistance to authorities in Maine, while state police urged people to shelter in place with their doors locked.
Wednesday night’s shooting is the deadliest in the United States this year.